“Todo se hace de corazón:” An examination of role and identity among Latina promotoras de salud.

Abstract

Promotoras de salud are community health workers that mostly help the underserved members of Latinx communities. They seek to reduce health disparities through community engagement and work that is voluntary or mostly unpaid. While there is evidence that promotoras aid in prevention, follow-up care, and treatment adherence, little is known about promotoras themselves, specifically, the impact that fulfilling their roles has on their views of themselves and their service identities. Fourteen Spanishspeaking, Latina promotoras were interviewed individually about their experiences and their motivation for the role. Four themes emerged from the content analysis of the participant responses: "Uno Nace Siendo Promotora:" One is Born Being a Promotora, "Poner Esa Semillita:" To Plant a Seed by Sharing Knowledge, "Es un Regalo Ser Promotora:" It is a Gift to be a Promotora, and "Se Hace por Amor pero también Hay Necesidad:" A Labor of Love but there are Needs too. The findings show that assuming and enacting the promotora role had positive benefits, both personal and professional, despite the often-limited recognition they received. The findings have multiple implications for the development of health and prevention programs, particularly for those that involve promotoras de salud. Public Significance StatementLatina promotoras de salud (i.e., Latina community health workers) largely enjoy their community engagement and are fulfilled by their roles. They particularly appreciate the opportunity to disseminate health-related knowledge and see themselves as uniquely able to reach Latinx underserved communities. While they view their work as a "labor of love" they would appreciate some level of compensation.

Addressing COVID-19 vaccination equity for Hispanic/Latino communities by attending to aguantarismo: A Californian US–Mexico border perspective

“…To triangulate interview findings, BLINDED and BLINDED conducted two focus groups via Zoom (in Spanish) with Hispanic/Latino CHWs/ promotores from South Region. Promotores are community members seen by most as trustworthy and wise, in ways akin to a beloved aunt; they are characterized by their affinity for service se hace de corazón (from the heart) ( Flores et al, 2022 ). Fourteen promotoras self-referred to attend at either of the two pre-announced times and were pre-consented as above; 13 attended: six and seven, respectively, all female (as is typical of promotores [the gender-neutral term]).…”

“…Providers also should demonstrate a level of personalismo , or formal but welcoming warm friendliness, versus treating clinic visits as business-like transactions or factory processes ( Machado, 2014 ; cf. Flores et al, 2022 ).…”

Future Directions in Lay Health Worker Involvement in Children’s Mental Health Services in the U.S.

“…Additionally, it is critical to acknowledge ways in which LHWs, who belong to the same communities they are serving, may be marginalized within research or practice. LHWs often face policies that lead to unequal compensation, training and supervision, or integration into treatment teams (Flores et al, 2021;Klein et al, 2020;Olaniran et al, 2017). If equity for LHWs is not central to the planning and design of studies (e.g., how LHWs will be compensated for their efforts), research and practices can reinforce structural racism experienced by LHWs (Klein et al, 2020).…”

Community Health Workers as Puentes/Bridges to Increase COVID-19 Health Equity in Latinx Communities of the Southwest U.S.

“…In November 2020, a community-university partnership launched a state-wide CHW-led model aiming to increase access to culturally relevant and linguistically appropriate COVID-19 testing for vulnerable and underserved Latinx communities in Arizona. The model engaged CHWs as trusted bilingual/bicultural community members, trained in public health, to address COVID-19-related questions and help navigate associated online services [ 27 ]. This study documents the experiences of the CHWs as they responded to the pandemic and the health disparities resulting from barriers to COVID-19 testing and therapeutics through the COVID-19 testing model [ 24 ].…”